Best secrets of small-town Chico’s big city park

1of3Sophie Podeswik and Jessica Godbout enjoy the view at Monkey Face in Bidwell Park in Chico. At 3,670 acres, Bidwell is by most estimates the ninth-largest city park in the nation — three times larger than Golden Gate Park, more than four times larger than Manhattan’s Central Park.Photo: Mason Trinca, Special to The Chronicle

2of3Flowers begin blooming near the trailhead to Bear Hole in Upper Bidwell Park in Chico.Photo: Mason Trinca, Special to The Chronicle

3of3People run along the shoreline of Horseshoe Lake at the Upper Bidwell Park in Chico.Photo: Mason Trinca, Special to The Chronicle

Morning on the Maidu Trail in Chico’s Bidwell Park is a giant advertisement for Why People Love Northern California. The trail curves up a long, rolling hillside. Now, in spring, grasses are lush green, oak trees are leafing out, and bursts of wildflowers glow purple and orange and red in the morning sun.

Look up and you see a hawk etching elegant circles in the blue sky.

The trail isn’t empty. There are a couple of parties of walking-stick-wielding hikers starting out, and, far above them, a trio of mountain bikers speeding along the crest of the hill. There are small kids and parents making their way down to nearby Horseshoe Lake, and there are dogs — retrievers, corgis, mutts, all of them overjoyed at being someplace with so many different smells. But it doesn’t seem crowded — there’s so much park, stretching in all directions, and such an assortment of trails to choose from, that the last thing you feel is hemmed in.

“Everybody calls Bidwell Park ‘The Crown Jewel of Chico,’” says John Merz, longtime environmentalist, longtime Chico resident, and currently president of the nonprofit group Friends of Bidwell Park.

The scene on the Maidu trail is enough to convince you that Merz is absolutely right. But Bidwell is more than Chico’s crown jewel — it’s one of California’s, a place where nature and people have combined to create something magnificent.

Big park, big history

One of the best things about Bidwell Park is that once you’re in it, you don’t think about anyplace else. The outside world seldom intrudes. That’s because it’s really big. At 3,670 acres, Bidwell is by most estimates the ninth-largest city park in the nation — more than three times the size of Golden Gate Park, more than four times the size of Manhattan’s Central Park.

How a medium-size college town in the Sacramento Valley ended up with the ninth-biggest park in the country involves some larger-than-life figures from its past.

You could think of John and Annie Bidwell as the Bill and Melinda Gates of their era, albeit with a pioneer spin. John Bidwell led the first wagon train from Missouri to California in 1841, then busied himself discovering gold on the Feather River, acquiring vast amounts of Sacramento Valley land, founding the city of Chico, building an opulent house (now Bidwell Mansion State Historic Park, which visitors can tour) and marrying a socially prominent Washington, D.C., woman 20 years his junior: Annie. As for Annie Kennedy Bidwell, she was a staunch suffragette, prohibitionist and lover of nature. After her husband died in 1900, she fulfilled what had been their shared dream, donating 2,000 acres for a Chico city park.

People enjoy an outing on top of Monkey Face at Bidwell Park in Chico.

Photo: Mason Trinca, Special to The Chronicle

Park layout

The park that Annie Bidwell began — more acres came later — is long and skinny, centered along Big Chico Creek and following it upstream for nearly 10 miles. The scenery runs from Sacramento Valley bottomlands to the rugged basalt cliffs of Big Chico Creek’s upper canyon.

The park is so diverse that Chico residents tend to divide it into three separate entities: Lower, Middle and Upper. Each has its own mood. With its lawns, canopies of oaks, picnic tables and locally beloved Caper Acres Playground, Lower Park is made for families — it also boasts Sycamore Pool, a lovely swimming hole created by damming up a stretch of the creek. (“Perfect on one of our 100-degree Chico summer days,” notes Merz.)

It’s also home to the excellent little Chico Creek Nature Center, with exhibits and activities for children.

Middle Park, which starts at Manzanita Avenue, has some developed features, too — a golf course and softball fields. But here Bidwell starts to feel wilder, as the Maidu and Middle and Upper Trails branch off into the foothills and toward the rock outcropping known as Monkey Face, and other trails dip into the dense riparian growth along Big Chico Creek.

Finally, there’s Upper Park, the eastern reaches of Big Chico Creek’s canyon. Here the park road, now unpaved, will take you to swimming spots like Bear Hole and Alligator Hole, while, zigzagging on the canyon walls above you trails like 10 Mile House and Guardian are reserved for ambitious hikers and expert mountain bikers.

Bird heaven

With Bidwell’s diversity of terrain comes enormous diversity of plants and wildlife. The park is home to several species of oak and sycamores, and several species of pines, poppies, lupine, monkey flower and other wildflowers. (And poison oak, especially near the creek, so watch out.)

And Bidwell has birds — 91 of which are described in Robert Lederer’s newly revised book, “The Birds of Bidwell Park.”

People gather along the Sycamore Pool at the Lower Bidwell Park in Chico.

Photo: Mason Trinca, Special to The Chronicle

“Typically, on any given spring day you’ll see at least 30 species,” says Lederer, an emeritus professor of biological sciences at Chico State, who has been birdwatching in Bidwell for decades. “Nuttall woodpeckers, acorn woodpeckers, towhee. And up in the sky, hawks and turkey vultures — they’re always around.”

Bidwell Park, Lederer adds, is a remarkable place. “It’s right in the middle of a city. But no matter where you go in the park you’re going to find birds. It’s something very special.”

Exploring Bidwell

How do you make the most of this special place? With 3,670 acres to choose from, a little advance planning helps. So does a good map. Even if you aren’t going to cycle, the Chico Bike Map (available free at most area bike shops) is worth picking up — its map of Bidwell is large, clear and useful. Other park maps can be downloaded at www.chico.ca.us/General_Services_Department/Park_Division/Bidwell_Park.asp

Some highlights:

Hiking: The parking area near Horseshoe Lake is a good starting point for a wide variety of mostly moderate hikes — Maidu, Middle, and Upper trails lead into the hills, while the Yahi Trail leads along Big Chico Creek. You can download a nature guide to the Yahi Trail at www.ccnaturecenter.org/bidwell-park-home/explore-the-park/park-maps/

For more strenuous hiking, take state Highway 32 northwest about 10 miles to 10 Mile House Road. Here you’ll see a small dirt parking lot on the west side of the road. This is the trailhead for 10 Mile House Trail and Guardian Trail, two of the most spectacular treks in the park.

Biking:
Many of Bidwell Park’s trails are open to cyclists, though you’ll be sharing the trail with hikers and dogs. For a flat, easy, pretty, child-friendly ride, follow Peterson Memorial Way or any of the other paved paths in Lower Bidwell Park. Middle Bidwell Park is made for beginner and intermediate mountain bikers:
G
ood routes here include Middle, Upper and Maidu trails, all of which start out near Horseshoe Lake.

On Sundays and Mondays, the non-paved portion of Upper Park Road, which leads deeper into Upper Bidwell Park, is closed to traffic, making this a fine route for mountain bikers. Note that helmets are required for all mountain bikers within the park. If you haven’t brought your bike, you’ll find a number of bike shops in town that rent them, among them Campus Bicycles and North Rim Adventure Sports.

Birding: Lederer advises bringing binoculars to see birds clearly. Avid birders can find a copy of Lederer’s “The Birds of Bidwell Park” in downtown Chico at the Made in Chico store (127 W. Third St., (530) 894-7009) and at Bird In Hand (320 Broadway; (530) 893-0545).

Tin Roof Bakery and Cafe: 627 Broadway, No. 170. (530) 892-2893, www.tinroofbakeryandcafe.com. You’re going to be working hard on your Bidwell hike or bike ride. Don’t you deserve a sublime muffin or tart or sandwich from this excellent bakery? Yes, you do. Pastries from $4, sandwiches and salads from $8.

Hotel Diamond: 220 W. Fourth St., (866) 993-3100, www.hoteldiamondchico.com. One block from downtown’s City Plaza, this restored 1904 hotel has nicely appointed rooms and the Two Twenty restaurant just off the lobby. Rates start at $129 (not including tax).